Soilwork
Photo: Nuclear Blast Records

Back in 2002, Soilwork released the well-received Natural Born Chaos, a tight, ultra-intense LP that irrevocably altered the band's sound — and for the better. It's still regarded as a tremendous breakthrough for the Swedish melodic-death-metal merchants, thanks in large part to producer Devin Townsend's influence.

Unfortunately for Soilwork, the Strapping Young Lad frontman — who has also worked with the likes of Lamb of God and Gwar — was too busy with his own projects to assist the band on its subsequent releases (2003's Figure Number Five and 2005's Stabbing the Drama), much to Soilwork frontman Björn "Speed" Strid's chagrin.

"He's meant so much to Soilwork's music," the giant singer explained. "I don't think we'd sound the way we do without him. He's been such a huge inspiration through the years, and he creates music in such a unique way ... I could definitely see him doing the next record for us."

By "next record," Strid's referring to the one that will inevitably follow Sworn to a Great Divide, the band's latest studio outing, which hits stores October 23. While Townsend didn't produce Sworn in its entirety, he did free up some time to work with Strid on his vocals, which the producer was "really psyched to do," Strid explained.

Sworn was tracked in Soilwork's hometown of Helsingborg, at Not Quite Studios — which is owned by the band's friends in Darkane. The album, like Soilwork's other efforts, expands on the sound they've been developing since the release of 1998's Steelbath Suicide, and Strid believes it's the band's most diverse offering to date.

"We can't make the same album twice," he explained. "Our music, it comes out in a natural way. We want to top ourselves every time, and we learn from the previous recording and try to take it to the next level. I definitely think we have developed our own sound, which is kind of hard nowadays. We were one of the originators of this balance between melodies and intensity, and we've developed that through the years. In the beginning, it was mostly the guitars that took care of the melodies. Now, it's in a different shade — it's more like the vocals take care of some of that stuff."

Soilwork, who were one of the main attractions on Ozzfest's second stage back in 2005, plan to spend the next year or so on the road to promote Sworn, Strid said. They'll get started next month when they take part in one of the year's biggest metal tours: the Lamb of God/ Killswitch Engage co-headlining run, which is set to launch November 28 in Lowell, Massachusetts, and go through December 17 in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.

It will be the band's first arena trek — a welcome change, Strid said, from Ozzfest's outdoor amphitheaters. After that tour wraps, Soilwork plan to return to Europe for some gigs and then head back to the States sometime in early 2008. Strid said there are no solidified plans yet for any '08 tours but confessed that several things are "in the works."

The band shot a video back in July for the album's lead single, "Exile," which Strid said has an unusual plotline.

"This director [Daniel Larsson] contacted us, and he had a tricky concept for the video," the singer explained. "His idea was that the whole band would be locked inside these speakers and amps, and this girl's walking her dog and she finds the speakers and amps in the bushes. She gets addicted to the music that comes out, and she wants to present it to the world — but we're working against her, tumbling around in the speakers. It's actually quite cool."

Soilwork's music will be featured in the upcoming video game "Overclocked," a thriller about an Army psychiatrist who's called to evaluate five young patients who've lost their memories. The band wrote an exclusive song, also called "Overclocked," for the game. Strid said they also hope to issue a DVD next year, as it will mark the 10th anniversary of Steelbath Suicide's release.

"It will be a live DVD," he said. "We wanted to do something special for our fans, and we've got lots of material already. We want to film some more shows soon — maybe even tape one show from each continent we hit on our tour."

Unfortunately, the yet-untitled disc will not feature footage from one of Strid's most memorable shows, which happened several years ago when the band was on tour with Brazilian death-metallers Krisiun.

"It was our first tour in Europe, and we were driving around in a house van that kept on breaking down," he explained. "We were playing in France at this restaurant, but the staff there thought they had booked a Brazilian samba band. You can image the looks on their faces when we all walked through the door. But actually, it was an unbelievable show. We still played, and the people there were really nice — they fed us and gave us red wine. It turned out pretty cool at the end."

The rest of the week's metal news:

Swedish band Sonic Syndicate will make their North American debut on an upcoming tour featuring Amon Amarth, Himsa and Decapitated. The tour launches November 19 in San Diego and runs through December 19 in Los Angeles. "We are excited and really looking forward to finally getting over there to see the American fans," guitarist Richard Sjunnesson said in a statement. "I have personally followed [Amon Amarth] since the early '90s, and touring with them makes me happier than words can express. It will of course also be an honor to share the stage with the brilliant metal acts Himsa and Decapitated. See you all soon!" ... West Virginia's Byzantine will drop their third album, Oblivion Beckons, at the end of January. The album was produced by Aaron Fisher and is the follow-up to 2005's ... And They Shall Take Up Serpents. "This is the first Byzantine album in which all four members have contributed songs," singer/ rhythm guitarist Chris "OJ" Ojeda said in a statement. "To my ears, it makes for a much more varied and interesting album from start to finish." Tracks include "Absolute Horizon," "Nadir" and "Expansion and Collapse." ...

Rammstein guitarist Richard Kruspe's side project, Emigrate, will bring their self-titled debut to the U.S. on January 28. The band's first single, "My World," was featured in the film "Resident Evil: Extinction." A video for the second single, "New York City," was recently shot in New York and can be seen on the Emigrate Web page. Emigrate — featuring Kruspe (vocals, guitar), Olsen Involtini (guitar), Arnaud Giroux (bass), Henka Johansson (drums) and Sascha Moser (programming) — recorded their album with longtime Rammstein cohorts Jacob Hellner and Stefan Glaumann. "At one point, I was asking myself, 'Does the world really need my record?' " Kruspe said in a statement. "[But I decided] I had to do it, simple as that." Kruspe is currently in Berlin with Rammstein recording the band's next album. ... Burnt by the Sun, From Autumn to Ashes and Schoolyard Heroes have been added to the lineup for this year's Saints and Sinners Festival, set for November 3 and November 4 in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Also slated to take the stage are Against Me!, Saves the Day, Horse the Band, the Number 12 Looks Like You, Glassjaw, Between the Buried and Me, From First to Last, Norma Jean and others. ...

Pig Destroyer frontman Blake Harrison and Misery Index bassist/singer Jason Netherton are now the hosts of a new two-hour show on XM Satellite Radio station Liquid Metal. Named "The Ultraviolence" after a 1987 Death Angel album, the program will debut Friday night (October 12) at 7 p.m. on Liquid Metal, XM channel 42. "We will play everything you may have missed, you have never heard of and/or you should know and [be] raising your illegitimate children to (preferably starting in the womb)," wrote Netherton in a release. "We will also be having guests and friends on regularly. The war starts now." ... Polish death-metal veterans Vader will release the live DVD "And Blood Was Shed in Warsaw" on November 20. The disc was shot at the Stodola Club in February on the last stop of the band's tour to promote its 2006 album, Impressions in Blood. The show features guest appearances by members of Behemoth and Vesania as well as the videos for "Helleluyah (God Is Dead)" and "Sword of the Witcher." ...

Tulsa, Oklahoma, metalcore band the Agony Scene will release their third album, Get Damned, October 23. The disc will be the band's first to feature drummer Ryan Folden, who replaced Brent Masters late last year. The band will launch a tour with A Life Once Lost, Suicide Silence and Walls of Jericho on October 30 in Rochester, New York. Dates run through November 14 in Lewisville, Texas. ... Psychedelic cult-metal band Bigelf will release their debut album, Hex, in North America on October 30. The disc was recorded in 2003 and released shortly after in Europe, but never came out Stateside. ... Long Island, New York, hardcore bludgeoners This Is Hell are in Full Force Studios with producer Joe Cincotta (Obituary, Suffocation) tracking the follow-up to their 2006 full-length debut, Sundowning. Drums for the yet-untitled new disc were recorded at Killingsworth Recording Company in Long Island with Tomas Costanza (Diffuser, Bedlight for Blue Eyes). The album is tentatively scheduled for release on February 19.

• Soilwork
• Lamb of God
• Killswitch Engage
• Sonic Syndicate
• Amon Amarth

Fabolous' <i>From Nothin' to Somethin'</i>
Photo: Def Jam

A decade ago Tuesday (June 12), inter-league play was introduced into Major League Baseball, tearing down the wall that prevented American and National League teams from competing outside the World Series — and giving migraines to fans who hate designated hitters.

So what more appropriate place to celebrate the 10-year anniversary than in a column about new CDs (talk about inter-league play!)? Well, ESPN, probably — but we're going to have a little fun anyway by pitting disparate artists from different genres against each other and seeing what happens. Let's play ball!

Fabolous vs. Queens of the Stone Age
Fab was wise to wait a week before finally releasing his forever-delayed From Nothin' to Somethin' — last week he would've be up against Rihanna, Daddy Yankee and T-Pain, whereas this week he's got the hip-hop playing field pretty much all to himself. Having said that, Rih Rih and T-Pain actually both pay a visit on Fab's LP — as do Jay-Z, Young Jeezy, Akon, Ne-Yo and basically every other major rapper you can name.

But QOTSA have a few friends too — namely affiliate Mark Lanegan and Julian Casablancas of the Strokes, both of whom tag along with the band as it ushers in its new Era Vulgaris. Trent Reznor, another pal of frontman Josh Homme, collaborated with the band as well, but their resulting song — called "Era Vulgaris," actually — is being reserved for bonus-track purposes. Speaking of which, Best Buy has a bonus all its own — a cover of Billy Idol's "White Wedding."

Betting Line: Fab unloads a ton more discs than QOTSA, but "White Wedding"? Come on. Homme gives a better interview too.

DJ Khaled vs. Enrique Iglesias
Miami hip-hop is staying hot thanks in part to DJ Khaled, whose 99 Jamz WEDR radio show is the most popular one in the city. He's hoping his hometown success translates across the rest of the country with his sophomore album, We the Best — which comes almost exactly a year after he dropped his Listennn ... The Album debut. He's got a ton of friends in tow to ensure chart appeal: T.I., Game, Lil Wayne, Akon, Ludacris, Ja Rule, Rick Ross, Juelz Santana and Young Jeezy — and that's not even the whole list.

Also banging out of MIA this week is Iglesias — he wasn't born in Miami (Madrid, Spain, can claim that honor) but is based there. Wayne is buds with him too, apparently — Weezy crops up on "Push," a new track featured on the singer's three-years-in-the-works Insomniac. There aren't nearly as many guests on the 15-track bilingual album as on Khaled's LP — although producer Sean Garrett does help out — but the rap DJ still has a little catching up to do, as Enrique has already dished out more than 40 million copies of his albums over the course of roughly a decade.

Betting Line: Enrique, who loves smack talk, will likely bring the smackdown.

DMX vs. Tia Carrera
He acts, she acts — except the "she" in question is actually a "they." That's right: Tia Carrera (not Carrere, for those of you who are paying close attention) are a blues-metal band from Austin, Texas. TC's new Heaven/Hell release is only an EP, but that's still more fresh material than you'll get from DMX this week. While he's working on a new studio album called Soul of a Man, former label Def Jam has taken the time to issue a 20-track best-of comp — but there aren't any goodies on The DEFinition of X: Pick of the Litter.

Betting Line: X isn't someone you ever want to mess with — in the record racks or anywhere else — and even though Tia Carrera (the band) isn't really the actress, they should still have to live down this movie.

Tupac Shakur vs. Sonic Youth
Like DMX, 'Pac is getting stuck with an archival release with no new material: Beginnings: The Lost Tapes 1988-1991, which is a straight reissue of the set. Sonic Youth are pouring plenty of treats onto a reissue of their own — a deluxe-edition version of their iconic indie-rock album, Daydream Nation. Dropping 19 years after it was first issued — why didn't the label just wait a year on the reissue and make it an even 20? — the album now features live versions of all the songs featured on the LP, studio bonuses and covers of Beatles, Mudhoney, Captain Beefheart and Neil Young tunes. If you're still not convinced, Daydream Nation was one of the first 200 albums chosen by the Library of Congress to be included in the National Recording Registry. So there ya go.

Datarock vs. Katatonia
The debut album by Datarock — Datarock Datarock, no self-promotion there! — has cemented the Norwegian dance-pop band abroad since the LP's release two years ago. Now the sucker — with its references to "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and love letter to Laurie Anderson — is finally hitting the States. "In Norwegian, you would call a computer a 'data machine' ... but in English, 'data' means information, which is even more appropriate because Datarock is essentially the product of 30 years of the information society," Fredrik Saroea," one-half of the duo, said in a statement. Too much in-for-ma-tion!

Veteran doom/goth-metal band Katatonia, from neighbor-to-the-east Sweden, take a, uh, slightly milder approach than Datarock. In a recent statement surrounding the band's recent The Great Cold Distance LP, singer Jonas Renkse said: "While embracing this album, one must know that it will only help to increase the coldness between us. It's a devious life. And this is a soundtrack to it." Now they're dishing up Live Consternation, a CD/DVD set that captures Katatonia's performance at the Summerbreeze Festival in Germany last year and includes Cold tracks as well.

Betting Line: Songs like "Computer Camp Love," "Night Flight to Uranus" and "I Used to Dance With My Daddy" give Datarock the edge.

Would the above list not make for a killer sequel to the "Judgment Night" soundtrack?

Song Title of the Week:

"Woof & Warp of the Quiet Giant's Hem" from Blitzen Trapper's Wild Mountain Nation

Album Cover of the Week:

Child Abuse's Child Abuse

Other Notables:

Pig Destroyer's Phantom Limb "The most deranged metal songs we could come up with." That's what singer J.R. Hayes said in a statement about the extreme-metal band's latest LP, which features "Rotten Yellow," "Girl in a Slayer Jacket" and "Thought Crime Spree." The quartet — which features a sound/noise manipulator but not a bassist, if you can believe it — included signed CD booklets with preordered copies of the disc.

Wooden Wand's James & the Quiet
This songwriter, whose parents named James Jackson Toth, sometimes plays with NYC psych-folk unit Vanishing Voice — or with his own band, which confusingly also plays under the same Wooden Wand moniker. (Adding to the insanity, two members of Vanishing Voice perform on this release, even though it's being credited to Wooden Wand — the man and the band, we presume.) That'll be cleared up soon enough, as this is expected to be the last release Toth will put out under the Wooden Wand alias. None of this seems to have bothered members of Sonic Youth, who have nearly taken him/them in as their own — Thurston Moore's Ecstatic Peace is the label releasing this album, and Lee Ranaldo and Steve Shelley lent a hand for it.

Blitzen Trapper's Wild Mountain Nation
In case the band and album names don't already give you the sense that you're lost in the woods somewhere, the conceit is furthered by song titles like "Badger's Black Brigade," "Country Caravan" and "Wild Mtn. Jam." The Portland, Oregon, six-piece is putting out this effort all on its own — but recent and upcoming gigs with Modest Mouse and the Hold Steady should boost Blitzen Trapper's profile. Just don't tell Santa!

New Releases:

· A Perfect Murder - War of Aggression (Victory)
· Rani Arbo & Daisy Mayhem - Big Old Life (Signature)
· Blitzen Trapper - Wild Mountain Nation (Lidkercow)
· Block - The Last Single Guy (Sona Blast!)
· Blue Scholars - Bayani (Rawkus)
· Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles - Diamonds in the Dark (Sugar Hill)
· Cherryholmes - Cherryholmes II: Black and White (Skaggs Family)
· Child Abuse - Child Abuse (Lovepump United) [Buy Now]
· Chow Nasty - Super (Electrical) Recordings (Omega)
· Paula Cole - Courage (Decca) [Buy Now]
· The Conformists - Three Hundred (54-40 or Fight)
· Crunchy Black - From Me to You (Asylum)
· Damnation A.D. - In This Life or the Next (Victory)
· Datarock - Datarock Datarock (Nettwerk)
· John Doe - A Year in the Wilderness (Yep Roc)
· Fabolous - From Nothin' to Somethin' (Def Jam) [Buy Now]
Read: "Fabolous' 'All-Stars' Jay-Z, Jeezy, Rihanna Make LP Somethin' To Be Reckoned With"
· Fair to Midland - Fables From a Mayfly: What I Tell You Three Times Is True (Republic)
· Firescape - Dancehall Apocalypse (Red Ink) [Buy Now]
· The Gaslight Anthem - Sink or Swim (XOXO)
· Robin Guthrie and Harold Budd - After the Night Falls and Before the Day Breaks (Darla)
· Michael Hearst - Songs for Ice Cream Trucks (Bar/None)
· Jon T. Howard - Time for Something New (Mettafour)
· I Hate Sally - Don't Worry Lady (Density)
· Enrique Iglesias - Insomniac (Interscope) [Buy Now]
· Joan as Police Woman - Real Life (Cheap Lullaby)
· Katatonia - Live Consternation (with DVD; Peaceville)
· Toby Keith - Big Dog Daddy (Show Dog Nashville)
· DJ Khaled - We the Best (Terror Squad/ Koch)
· Eddie Levert Sr. & Gerald Levert - Something to Talk About (Atlantic)
· Little Texas - Missing Years (Montage)
· The Lodger - Grown-Ups (Slumberland)
· Mad Juana - Acoustic Voodoo (Azra)
· Jono Manson - Summertime (Sunset)
· The Mission U.K. - God Is a Bullet (Cooking Vinyl)
· Abra Moore - On the Way (Sarathan)
· Laurie Morvan Band - Cures What Ails Ya (Screaming Lizard)
· Napalm Death - Punishment in Capitals (Eagle Rock)
· Mark Olson - The Salvation Blues (Hacktone)
· Paramore - Riot! (MVI album with bonus CD due same day; Fueled by Ramen)
· People Noise - Ordinary Ghosts (self-released)
· Pig Destroyer - Phantom Limb (Relapse)
· Queens of the Stone Age - Era Vulgaris (Interscope) [Buy Now]
Read: "Queens Of The Stone Age Usher In A 'Positively Dirty' New Era"
· Mark Ronson - Version (Red Ink)
· Saturna - Some Delicious Enemy (Nexus Underground) [Buy Now]
· Scissors for Lefty - Underhanded Romance (Eenie Meenie)
· SoCalled - Ghettoblaster (JDub)
· Spyro Gyra - Good to Go-Go (Heads Up)
· Takeovers - Bad Football (Off) [Buy Now]
· Tia Carrera - Heaven/Hell (EP; Arclight)
· Tuatara - East of the Sun (Fast Horse)
· David Vandervelde - Nothin No (EP; Secretly Canadian)
· Wooden Wand - James & the Quiet (Ecstatic Peace)
· Various artists - Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur (two CDs; Warner Bros.)
· Various artists - "Nancy Drew" soundtrack (Bulletproof)

Notable Reissues and Archival Material: · Bad Manners - Stupidity (SOS)
· The Bongos - Drums Along the Hudson (Cooking Vinyl)
· Buckethead/ Travis Dickerson - Chicken Noodles, Gorgone and Death Cube K Tunnel (TDRS)
· Bullet for My Valentine - The Poison - Deluxe Edition (with DVD; Jive)
· James Cotton - Vanguard Visionaries (Vanguard)
· Dick Dale - Checkered Flag; King of the Surf Guitar; Mr. Eliminator; and Summer Surf (Sundazed)
· DMX - The DEFinition of X: Pick of the Litter (Def Jam) [Buy Now]
· Yvonne Elliman - Simple Needs (EP; Eborhythm)
· Moe. - Warts & All 5 (three-CD box set; Fat Boy)
· Nada Surf - Karmic (Hi-Speed Soul) [Buy Now]
· O'Death - Head Home (Ernest Jenning)
· Tupac Shakur - Beginnings: The Lost Tapes 1988-1991 (Koch) [Buy Now]
· Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation - Deluxe Edition (two CDs; Geffen/UMe)
· Andy Summers - Synaesthesia (Times Square)
· Keith Sweat - Sweat Hotel Live (Shout! Factory)
· Traveling Wilburys - The Traveling Wilburys Collection (two CDs and one DVD; deluxe edition due same day; Rhino)
· Dan Zanes and Friends - How to Grow a Family Band Gift Set (six-CD box set with book; Ryko)

Music DVDs:

· Black Sabbath - "Up Close and Personal" (Hurricane) [Buy Now]
· Deep Purple - "Live at Montreux 2006" (Eagle Vision) [Buy Now]
· Keith Sweat - "Sweat Hotel Live" (Shout! Factory) [Buy Now]
· Various artists - "Atlantic Records: The House That Ahmet Built" (Rhino)
· Various artists - "Glastonbury" (two DVDs; Velocity)

Digital Releases:

· The Dilettantes - 101 Tambourines (in stores July 10; StrangerTouch)
· Metric - Grow Up and Blow Away (available exclusively on iTunes until June 26, when it is properly released; Last Gang) [Buy Now]

Coming Attractions:

June 19: · Mandy Moore - Wild Hope (Firm) [Preorder]
· Tomahawk - Anonymous (Ipecac)
Read: "Tomahawk Actually Starting To Sound Like An American-Indian Band"
· White Stripes - Icky Thump (Warner Bros.) [Preorder]
Read: "White Stripes Reveal Icky New Album Details"

June 26: · Beastie Boys - The Mix-Up (Capitol) [Preorder]
· Kelly Clarkson - My December (RCA) [Preorder]
Read: "Kelly Clarkson On Her Revealing New LP: 'I'm Not Even This Open With Boyfriends!' "
· Metric - Grow Up and Blow Away (Last Gang) [Preorder]

July 3: · Kelly Rowland - Ms. Kelly (Columbia) [Preorder]
· T.I. - T.I. vs. T.I.P. (Atlantic)
Read: "T.I. Taking On T.I.P. With Help From Eminem, Justin Timberlake"
· Velvet Revolver - Libertad (RCA) [Preorder]
Read: "Scott Weiland Pumped For Velvet Revolver LP, Solo Collabo With Pharrell"

• Fabolous
• Queens of the Stone Age
• DMX
• Sonic Youth
• Tupac

As I Lay Dying
Photo: Metal Blade

As I Lay Dying, along with Killswitch Engage and Unearth, have been at the forefront of metalcore for the last five years. But according to frontman Tim Lambesis, the band's forthcoming LP An Ocean Between Us was largely influenced by what he perceives is the deterioration of the genre.

Before they began writing material for the disc late last year, the San Diego metallers "spent some time listening to our last album [2005's Shadows Are Security] and, just from being on tour, we became a little bit jaded by how the genre — as a whole — has sort of copied itself over and over again," he explained. "We decided we wanted to be more diverse, even down to the point where we sort of felt like we should really focus on writing songs in different categories, and then pick the best songs from those categories and use them for the record."

Produced by Killswitch guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz (Every Time I Die, All That Remains), the album — which hits stores August 21 and features backing vocals from members of Destroy the Runner — will include a dozen tracks, including "Separation," "Within Destruction" and the likely first single, "Nothing Left." Lambesis said listeners will find that each song differs from the next, with some cuts bordering on chaotic and foreboding, others more driven by melody, and a couple that are just straight-up, balls-to-the-wall thrashy.

"On the tempo side of things, we wanted the record to be pretty fast as a whole, so we wrote some real thrash-influenced songs," he said. "We even wrote songs that have a more emotional depth to them — songs that aren't just pound-your-face-in all the time."

Most metal acts pride themselves on releasing consistently heavier records, and An Ocean Between Us is indeed the heaviest As I Lay Dying LP to date. But what makes Lambesis proud of the album is that he thinks it's the band's most memorable one to date. "It's definitely our fastest record," he added.

Lambesis said it was important for As I Lay Dying to work with Dutkiewicz on An Ocean Between Us because "it was good to have that outside perspective." The band had finished pre-production on the record well before Dutkiewicz journeyed out to California, to the singer's home studio.

"We really went out of our way to have the record completely recorded and done before Adam even got here, so when he did, it would be the right time for that fresh perspective," Lambesis said. "He has great ears, and even if he ended up going with one of the original ideas we had from pre-production, it was confirming that it was his set of ears that gave it the thumbs up."

Lyrically, Lambesis said the album deals with the idea that "we no longer have the same dreams as the rest of the world, that all of the qualities of life that it seems we're taught we should focus on, whether it be money or a certain type of education or a certain type of job — the dreams that are handed down to us — it's about how we have nothing in common with those dreams anymore. It's about the whole idea of fulfillment — if you do these things and take these steps, you will be happy — and how really, wealth, the prestige of being in a band, all that stuff is ultimately meaningless."

But putting that message to disc wasn't all that easy, Lambesis admits. He said the band "had all the bad luck in the world" while making the effort.

"When we were recording drums, the computer crashed," he said. "When we started guitars, we had some bad cabling, so the first few days of guitars, we had distorted lines. And then we had a bad batch of strings, where every string in the entire box was buzzing on the frets.

"Then one day, I just woke up and came downstairs, and inside the vocal booth, there were just flies all over the wall — maybe 30, 45," he continued. "And there are no windows in my vocal booth, so I couldn't figure out how they got in there. It was pretty surreal going in there. That confirmed for us that we had the ultimate bad luck during this record. It seems the better something is, the more opposition there is towards it."

As I Lay Dying plan to spend all of August on the road as part of this summer's Warped Tour. A headlining tour is in the works for late October.

The rest of the week's metal news:

The Emperor reunion may be over at the end of the month, but the band's frontman, Ihsahn, will continue to push musical boundaries with his other projects. His latest is Hardingrock, a collaboration with Star of Ash (ex-Peccatum member Heidi S. Tveitan, a.k.a. Ihriel) and Norwegian folk artist Knut Buen. The band's debut, Grimen, will be released in Europe on June 11 on Nyrenning Forlag (no U.S. date has been scheduled). The album features folk songs played on Norway's national instrument, the harding fiddle, with lyrics and melodies based on Norwegian mythology. The music will also feature strong doses of heavy metal and classical-inspired electronica. "Even though the elements the three of us brought to the table were very contrasting, I think we're all very pleased with how it came together," Ihsahn said. "The material provided to us by Knut is a huge part of Norway's cultural treasure, and I think the album definitely is a worthy development that rocks." Sample the group's eccentric tunes on its MySpace page. ...

High on Fire will tour the Midwest after they finish their current studio session in Seattle with producer Jack Endino (Nirvana, Soundgarden). Dates start July 20 in Teton Village, Wyoming, and run through July 31 in Denver. The band's yet-untitled new album is tentatively scheduled for release in early fall. ... Obituary have finished tracking their seventh album, Xecutioner's Return, and are now preparing to mix and master the effort. Because of their expediency, the release date for the disc has been pushed forward to August 28 from its earlier-announced date of September 11. The legendary Florida death-metal band will launch a full U.S. tour in early September. ...

Samael will release their seventh studio album, Solar Soul, July 17. According to the band's label, the album marks a return to the type of sweeping post-industrial black metal of the Swiss group's 1996 record, Passage. ... Genghis Tron will play three dates with the Red Chord, Through the Eyes of the Dead and All Shall Perish Friday (June 1) through Sunday, and a pair of shows with Pig Destroyer and Car Bomb on June 15-16. Then the avant-garde rock extremists will team up with Ed Gein and Gaza for an East Coast tour that runs from July 17 in Poughkeepsie, New York, through July 29 in Midland, Michigan. The Philadelphia band is currently working on songs for its next disc, the follow-up to 2006's Dead Mountain Mouth. "We're building a bold, psychedelic bridge to GodCity [Recording] Studio, where we'll be recording our next album in August with [Converge guitarist] Kurt Ballou," Genghis Tron said in a statement. "Thanks to some serious unemployment, we've been fully immersed in erecting said bridge — working eight hours or more a day, seven days a week on new material. It's sounding insane and awesome and entirely indescribable. We're stoked." ...

Swedish doom-death band Katatonia will headline their first U.S. tour starting September 4 in West Springfield, Virginia, and ending September 26 in Houston. Scar Symmetry, Insomnium and Swallow the Sun will open all shows. Katatonia's new live CD/DVD package, Live Consternation, comes out Tuesday. ... It took combing through more than 2,000 applications, but Finnish symphonic-metal band Nightwish have finally found a singer to replace Tarja Turunen, who was asked to leave the band in October 2005. Swedish chanteuse Anette Olzon, formerly of the band Alyson Avenue, is currently working with Nightwish in the studio on the follow-up to 2004's Once. "She's already so much more than we were ever expecting to get," said the band in a statement. "Long live new Nightwish. The new album will be a monster." The yet-untitled disc is scheduled for a fall release. ... The new record by Swedish doom legends Candlemass, King of the Grey Islands, will be unearthed June 22. The disc marks the debut of the band's new singer, Robert Lowe (Solitude Aeturnus), who replaced Messiah Marcolin after his departure in April 2006. ...

Polish death/black-metal band Behemoth have posted the new track "Prometherion" on Ozzfest.com. The song comes from the band's upcoming disc, The Apostasy, which comes out July 17. Between dates on Ozzfest this summer, Behemoth will play one-off shows with Lamb of God, Hatebreed and 3 Inches of Blood. ... Swedish death-metal band Zonaria will release their debut album, Infamy and the Breed, September 4. The album was recorded by Per Nilsson and mixed and mastered by his Scar Symmetry bandmate Jonas Kjellgren at Black Lounge Studios in Gälve, Sweden. Tracks include "Infamy," "The Last Endeavor," "Pandemic Assault" and "Descend Into Chaos," which is available on the band's MySpace page. "We encourage everyone to give us feedback and to let us know what they think of the new song," guitarist Emil Nyström said in a statement. "We can assure each and every one of you that the wait will be well worth it and 'Descend Into Chaos' is just a small taste of the full on assault that is Infamy and the Breed."

• As I Lay Dying
• Candlemass
• Killswitch Engage
• Unearth
• High On Fire

Black Label Society's Zakk Wylde (file)
Photo: Getty Images/Jo Hale

New Jersey's own Zakk Wylde generally just doesn't give a damn about much. For example, beyond Killswitch Engage and As I Lay Dying, he doesn't know who's playing Ozzfest's second stage this year. But really, you can't exactly blame the dude. He usually doesn't get up until after noon, and even then, he's often nursing a hangover.

So when asked what he thinks of Wicked Wisdom, it's not too surprising when Wylde replies, "What's that?" After being told that it's the Jada Pinkett Smith-fronted group that takes the stage long before he rolls out of bed, he asks, "What does Jada Pinkett Smith do?" When he finds out she's the Hollywood actress married to Will Smith, who's also been attending all of the Ozzfest dates, he perks up. "F---ing Will Smith's been on the Ozzfest? What the hell? I need to get an autograph, dude. 'I loved you in "Ali," bro.' "

Wylde says he just doesn't care about "any of that [second stage] sh--. It cuts into time at the Irish tavern, you know what I mean, dude? Why? Is everyone pissing and moaning? What, because they're a new band? Dude, I don't get up that early. Have people been bottling them?"

Bottling?

"Heaving sh-- at them? Bottles? Dude, I remember when we did a show up in Toronto back in 2001, and ... it's too bad, because they were really nice dudes, too. But what were they? Crazytown? You know how you look at a light at night, and there's nothing but f---ing moths around it? Well, there's nothing but these f---ing bottles, these little Evian and Poland Spring bottles, and they're throwing them up there in f---ing droves. Poor bastards. But hey, it's a metal bill and you're doing hip-hop. Get this sh-- the f--- out of here."

For Wylde, who's been a part of Ozzfest for the last seven years, this summer's edition has been like all the rest. "Just a f---ing ass-kicking time, dude. It's like going to Great Adventure."

Once the tour's over, Wylde said he's got two projects in the works he needs to finish. The first is a DVD with live footage from several recent shows his Black Label Society played over in Paris and London; that, he said, could see release early next year. There's also a compilation CD that should be out around the same time, featuring all of the earliest BLS material as well as some bonus tracks, to be called Kings of Damnation.

The rest of the week's metal news:

Bränn Dailor, drummer for Atlanta grindcore masters Mastodon, told Metal File the band's been "collecting riffs and accepting ideas as they come" while on the road during this summer's Ozzfest. He said Mastodon plan to take a few weeks off this September before hitting the studio, where they'll "dump those ideas out and start putting it all together. We've got a lot of good ideas." Dailor said the band hopes to release its Warner Bros. debut next summer. ... Trivium will hit the road in November with Children of Bodom for a full U.S. tour; there are no definitive dates yet. ... Explosive D.C. grind act Pig Destroyer have lined up three West Coast dates with Uphill Battle, Phobia and Triac: August 5 at the Showcase Theater in Corona, California; August 6 at Los Angeles' Hanging Jury; and August 7 at the Voodoo House in Tijuana, Mexico. ... Roadrunner United— The All-Star Sessions, a disc slapped together for the label's 25th anniversary, is set to hit stores on October 11. The album features collaborations involving past and current heavyweights from Roadrunner's roster, including Opeth's Mikael Åkerfeldt, Glassjaw's Daryl Palumbo, Slipknot's Jim Root, Max Cavalera, King Diamond, Type O Negative's Peter Steele, Vision of Disorder's Tim Williams and others. Tracks include "Roads," "Constitution Down," "Annihilation by the Hand of God" and "The Dawn of a Golden Age." ...

Killswitch Engage guitarist and funnyman Adam Dutkiewicz was asked recently whether he'd be interested in touring with new Roadrunner labelmates Opeth: "I would love to. We can discuss math problems and castles. It would be awesome. I think they'll be into it. They just seem like they'd be down with both of those things." ... Sacramento's With Passion have lost two and gained another. The band's original drummer, Jacob Peete, is back in the mix, while keyboardist Brandon Guadagnolo and guitarist Andy Burt have departed to pursue other musical interests, according to the band's Web site. ... New York extreme metallers Genghis Tron were almost killed by a bunny last week. The band was driving to a gig in New Mexico at 70 mph when it struck a jack rabbit and lost control of its van and trailer. The vehicle rolled off the highway and the trailer was thrown 30 feet into the desert, but no one was injured. The accident forced Genghis to cancel the rest of their U.S. tour, which they hopes to make up at the end of the year. ... Irreverent hard-rock band My Ruin will release their new studio album, The Brutal Language, September 27. The band added bassist Chris Lisee and drummer Jason Brunk to its lineup after completing the disc. ...

Los Angeles stoner-metal band Fireball Ministry will release their third album, Their Rock Is Not Our Rock, October 18. The disc was produced by Nick Raskulinecz (Velvet Revolver, Foo Fighters) and recorded at Dave Grohl's Studio 606 West and the late Elliott Smith's New Monkey Studios. The album will be the first to feature ex-Systematic bassist Johnny Chow, who replaced original bassist Janis Tanaka. Fireball Ministry will open for CKY from August 8 in San Diego through September 11 in Norfolk, Virginia. ... Doom/punk powerhouse Debris, Inc., which includes Trouble bassist Ron Holzner and Saint Vitus guitarist Dave Chandler, will play a string of East Coast dates to support their self-titled debut, which came out in April. The 10-date tour will launch August 4 in Chicago and end August 13 in Dayton, Ohio. ... Canadian experimental thrash-metal vets Voivod have signed a deal with the End Records and will enter the studio in the fall to record their 11th album, which is due in early 2006. The band's last, self-titled album, its first to feature ex-Metallica bassist Jason Newsted, came out in March 2003. ...

Thine Eyes Bleed have been added to this fall's International Extreme Music Festival, which also features God Dethroned, Byzantine, Nightrage, Hell Within, Epoch of Unlight and Lilitu. Thine Eyes Bleed's debut album, In the Wake of Separation, came out June 21. ... Sunset Strip rockers Beautiful Creatures will release their second album, on August 23. The disc will be the band's first since its 2001 self-titled debut. Beautiful Creatures are fronted by Bang Tango singer Joe Leste, previously played Ozzfest and opened up for Kiss before being dropped by Warner Bros. ... New York hardcore legends Madball will hit the road on September 7 in Revere, Massachusetts, for a 21-date U.S. headlining tour, with support acts Walls of Jericho, Misery Signals and Full Blown Chaos. ... God Forbid's IV: Constitution of Treason will be in stores on September 20 and features "The End of the World," "Crucify Your Beliefs" and "To the Fallen Hero." ... Guitarist Kevin Rampelberg has left the Red Chord; they are performing as a four-piece for the time being, as they search for a replacement. ... Converge have started working on the follow-up to 2004's You Fail Me. They'll preview some of their new material on an upcoming Canadian tour and at this year's Hellfest in late August.

• Zakk Wylde
• Black Label Society
• Voivod
• Mastodon
• Madball

Neurosis
Photo: Neurot Recordings

PHILADELPHIA — A sub-freezing Philly was the setting for the Relapse Contamination Festival, a two-day event showcasing the best in metal, heavy rock and grindcore, all from the staple label in that scene, Relapse Records.

Saturday's kickoff at the legendary Trocadero club consisted of Bongzilla, Alabama Thunderpussy, Cephalic Carnage, Mastodon and Neurosis, who were playing their first East Coast gig in three years. The Trocadero was packed early for the show and the fans seemed like an army, uniformed in work pants, jeans, black sneakers or boots, black hooded sweatshirts, ski caps and big work coats — even the girls.

First up was Bongzilla. The band takes thick, Black Sabbath riffs and combines them with screeching vocals and weird mood shifts. During their opening song, guitarist/vocalist Mike Makela blew out his amp, and there was a bit too much downtime before the group resumed its set and continued to play songs from its new album, Gateway, as well as older material. All in all, Bongzilla were capable but a bit boring. Their songs are great but their stage presence is a little less than exciting.

The next band out of the stable was Alabama Thunderpussy, who hit the stage with all cylinders firing. They're straight-up killer, smash face, southern rock, like ZZ Top with a trash metal infusion. Frontman Johnny Throckmorton was in full Ronnie Van Zant mode, swinging the mic stand and ripping through songs off their new album, Staring Into the Divine. Guitarist Erik Larson (ex-Avail drummer) said after the show that he's putting out a solo record called Resounding on Small Stone Records. "I played everything except bass," Larson said. "It's different than anything else I've done."

After the moonshine metal of Alabama Thunderpussy, it was time for the straight death metal sounds of Cephalic Carnage. Cephalic is your basic prog-metal, face-bashing, ear- bleeding music. The band seemed to be able to bring to life some of the songs off their album Lucid Interval which lay flat on the record itself. However, as good as Cephalic were, nothing could prepare the audience for the power and tight-as-hell live show of the new band on the scene, Mastadon.

The crowd had been buzzing about Mastodon all night, especially about the tension between them and grindcore kings Today Is the Day, who were playing Sunday. It seemed that Mastodon drummer Brann Dailor and guitarist Bill Kelliher — both former members of Today Is the Day — left the band on less than good terms. Fans felt tension between the groups, but a Relapse representative said, "That's simply not true. They're civil to each other." Mastodon took to the stage and crushed through their 40-minute set of songs from their 2002 debut, Remissions. Mastodon could be considered the second coming of Metallica and Rush combined, and nobody who's seen them live could counter that opinion.

The long-awaited apex of day one came when Neurosis hit the stage. They brought the crowd to its feet, where it would stay for the rest of the show. Neurosis' slow, sludgy sound grew slowly until it enveloped the audience. Complete with constant moving images behind them, Neurosis are not just a band to see, they're an experience that makes you sit, thinking dark thoughts about your life and those you love. Using space, heavy riffs, slow pacing and time changes, Neurosis became a single-minded living machine that moved the audience, dissected us, and then put us back together. Blowing through songs stretching from Enemy of the Sun all the way to their new album, A Sun That Never Sets, Neurosis delivered the show fans wanted to see after three years: big, scary, sensitive and totally honest.

The next day, Philly was still freezing but the crowd returned to the Trocadero to witness the advance screening of Neurosis' new DVD for A Sun That Never Sets. The DVD had lots of eclectic art pieces, snippets of videos and other visual themes over music from the new album, but it was an odd way to start a rock show. The crowd seemed a bit listless, but that ended as soon as Pig Destroyer hit the scene, slapping the crowd awake with their skull-crushing, no-nonsense grindcore. They mostly played songs off their new release, Prowler in the Yard, and one untitled track off their upcoming unreleased LP. The crowd went nuts, kicking up more pit action than the night before.

Almost as soon as Pig Destroyer were off the stage, post-hardcore grind masters Burnt by the Sun were out and unleashing on the crowd, with Dave Witte proving why he's one of the greatest drummers out today. Burnt by the Sun did almost the entire new album and seemed to hold the energy that Pig Destroyer had created. The band rarely disappoints.

Next up was the most insane display of the evening, from Today Is the Day. Though not everybody was happy with their new two-disc release, Sadness Will Prevail, Today Is the Day brought it to the crowd in a big way. By the end of their set, frontman Steve Austin had thrown his $2,500 Paul Reed Smith into the crowd and bassist Chris Debari had a head gash, complete with blood. Not everybody loved it, but nobody took their eyes off of it.

The final two bands of the night were High on Fire and the Dillinger Escape Plan. High on Fire proved they are rock gods by playing a fierce combination of Celtic Frost heaviness and the rock sensibilities of Kyuss or Black Sabbath. They stomped through songs off last year's Surrounded by Thieves and threw in a cover of Venom's "Witching Hour." Ending the whole festival was the Dillinger Escape plan, the grindcore/metal outfit that sounds like calculus played through loud amps and tuned down to heavy-as-hell tuning. Sometimes violent, often hard to listen to but always cutting edge, Dillinger had the most interesting set of the night with two covers (Nine Inch Nails' "Wish" and Aphex Twin's "Come to Daddy") as well as a small fire breaking out onstage thanks to a pyro mishap. I was hoping against hope that Mike Patton would show up onstage since they'd worked with him on the new Dillinger EP, Irony Is a Dead Scene, but no such luck.

When relative quiet returned to the Troc, a drained but satisfied crowd funneled out into the single-digit temperatures. Pondering the possibility of making this an annual event, one of Relapse's bigwigs, Carl Schultz, said, "I don't know, but it'll be next year, definitely."

For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.

— Iann Robinson

• Neurosis
• Pig Destroyer
• Today is the Day